Finding Broncos: Scouting Michigan DL Kenneth Grant

The Denver Broncos have prioritized both the offensive and defensive line, investing money and draft picks to build both sides of the trenches. That pursuit will continue in the 2025 NFL draft.

One prospect who's been mocked to the Broncos at No. 20 overall is Michigan defensive lineman Kenneth Grant. Let's examine his scouting report.

Biography

Grant turns 22 in October. He's from Merrillville, Indiana, where he went to high school. He committed to Michigan, where Jim Harbaugh called him “a gift from the football gods.”

Size & Athleticism

Grant didn’t do the athletic testing at the NFL Combine, though expectations were high for the 6-foot-4, 331-pound defensive lineman. Before the 2024 season, Grant made Bruce Feldman’s “Freak List” as he ran a sub-5.0-second 40-yard dash at over 360 pounds and clocked in at 18.75 mph on GPS, which was only the start of his athleticism.

Key Statistic

As a nose tackle, you don’t often see a player have 50 pressures and eight sacks on 551 pass-rushing snaps, which is what Grant has over the last two years combined. His total snap count puts him in the same ballpark as NFL defensive linemen from last year, where only 13 players had more pressures and nine with more sacks. Only one of those defensive linemen had comparable size.

Pros

Grant has an outstanding build, a broad chest, outstanding length, and a thick trunk. He uses his size to demand attention from blockers, making it hard to move him off the point of attack. Despite his size, he has the athleticism and ability to move around a defensive front, working from a 0-technique out to a 5-tehcnique.

With Grant's size, he absorbs contact without being moved. He plays with a reasonably consistent pad level and has a good enough arsenal of moves for a nose tackle type. When working against double teams, he can make himself thin and split the blocks or power his way through.

Grant's power is outstanding, and he can jolt blockers when engaging. His hand fighting is good, and he does well protecting his chest from blockers' control.

Grant uses his power to get blockers off-balance and can sustain that to break through. When it comes to tools and traits, Grant has both and a well-developed technical standpoint.

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Cons

Despite his athleticism, Grant has to speed up his snap get-off. He also initially gets too high with his pad level, though it doesn’t happen frequently. The athleticism can also be locked behind lower body tightness, leading to issues when working laterally against the run.

Grant won’t chase down many plays downfield or sideline-to-sideline. His play can be more breaking down the blocker instead of quick wins. This may be a concern over his viability on passing downs against quicker passing teams or when it comes to moving the pocket.

Fit with Broncos

While there are concerns about Grant's range, he's such a great player, working between the tackles and pushing the pocket. When looking for options to replace D.J. Jones, Grant is a great option.